Drugstore Dish: e.l.f. Cosmetics

Today I have a fantastic guest post from my friend Cindy Bokma who runs a great blog called, “Hello Dollface.” Cindy is a fantastic blogging friend and I had the great luck of hanging out with her in California for the Suave sponsored Reel Women in Movies. I hope you will enjoy her great dish this week on on a great deal found at the drugstore on cosmetics and please visit her fantastic site for the scoop on all of your beauty needs!

My love for makeup goes back many years. When I was a pre-teen, nothing excited me more than going to Drug Fair and strolling down the cosmetics aisle. Never mind that the store was consistently dark and slightly damp. It also smelled. But to me, the makeup aisle was a bright and endless treasure trove stocked with the likes of Cover Girl, Wet’N Wild, Maybelline and the “high-end” goodness of Revlon and L’oreal.

Despite not only my passionate pleas to wear makeup, but the fact my face was as white and pale as a kabuki mask and my eyelashes were blonde- the whole look not unlike that movie Powder- my mother made me wait until I was sixteen to add oomph to my bland face.

Like a horse let out of the gate, I went moderately wild when I was finally given access to the powders and paints that for so long I admired. In no time, my purple Caboodle case burst with pressed powders and blushes and mascaras and blue eyeliners.

Throughout past twenty years I must have gone through hundreds of products, both from department stores and drugstores. Who can forget the thrill of the Clinique free- gift -with- purchase? Or the advent of the makeup sample in a magazine?

Even though I love nothing more than an expensive lip gloss or face cream that promises to reverse the years, I have come to realize that good products don’t have to cost more than a car payment.

I knew of elf productsbut never tried them. With the economy in the dumps, now is as good of a time as any to give this brand a whirl. With everything $1, how can you go wrong? One dollar… What’s the catch? There has to be a catch, right?

But no. I tried many products from elf to get the lowdown on this brand and was pleasantly, happily surprised at the quality. And the choices! Oh goodness, you could go crazy while shopping at elf. There’s everything you need. Even cool little nail polish remover pads, perfect for travel. I weep with joy- really pass me a tissue- knowing there’s a company out there that offers inexpensive yet great products that everyone can afford.

Launched by my pal Scott-Vincent Borba in 2004, elf continues to give women the best cosmetics for the value. Even more than cosmetics, elf offers tools like fantastic brushes and my can’t-live-without- oil blotting sheets. You can order via the elf website, or use their location finder tool to see where elf is sold near you. I can buy elf at Kmart or Target which makes this brand not only cheap but accessible!

And when my daughter comes to me, preferably not for several years, asking to wear lip gloss and nail polish, I am going to steer her to the palest, clearest pink I can find and let her spend a couple of bucks… on elf!

What is your favorite budget-friendly make-up brand?

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I am so excited to open our Drugstore up to everyone and I hope that you will be able to participate this week or in weeks to come! I will be posting this each Tuesday so please mark your calendars if you plan to participate. You can post your entries at any time throughout the week and then leave your entry in the links below.

1 Comment

Unfortunately, e.l.f. has a lot to learn about customer service and how to handle shipping. I agree that for $1, you are getting decent quality products- I especially love all of their brushes and lip glosses. Trying to contact customer service is worse than getting a tooth pulled. Shipping can either take 4-5 days or 4-5 weeks- seriously! Also, every 3-4 months or so an email goes around that e.l.f. is going out of business or being bought by Nordstroms. I’ve seen this several times and know it is not true, but I question who actually puts this out there – the company possibly to generate more business? Very interesting that the same ‘rumors’ gets around so often. Quality isn’t bad and I still use some of their stuff, but I haven’t ordered for about 2 years because the hassle is not worth it. IMHO